6 Apps That Make It Simple to Split Expenses With Friends

When a big expense needs to be divvied up among friends or roommates, toss the checkbook and calculator and use these apps to handle the math and payments.

Let’s say you’ve got a group vacation going on — a cross-country road trip, or a weekend trip to Vegas, perhaps. Figuring out who owes what for gas, hotel rooms, dinners, groceries, and other payments can be a spreadsheet nightmare. Luckily, the app Splittr ($2 on iOS; there’s a similar, unrelated free app by the same name on Windows Phone) makes this super easy. Simply create the trip or event, then add individual expenses for that activity. From there, you can add the parties involved in that activity and how much each person contributed thus far. Then the app does its magic and figures out each person’s current balance, as well as who owes what (and to whom) at the end of the trip. After a visit to Palm Springs last year, I spent at least an hour trying to figure out what this app does in minutes. One caveat: It doesn’t let you pay up in-app — you’ve got to use real life money, or do that using another app … like Venmo!

Venmo (free on iOS and Android) is the way to go for things like paying a friend back for lunch, or paying rent or bills to a master tenant (or tech savvy landlord). If your roommates owe you money for rent, they can either send you the money they owe through the app (free of charge if you use a debit card or connect your bank account), or you can send a charge for them to fulfill. You can complete the payment in the app, or do so by replying to a text message notification with a specific code. If you use iOS 7, you can also make payments with nearby friends over Bluetooth, similar to the way you can share data using Apple’s AirDrop system. Venmo was recently acquired by PayPal, but the app experience is more friendly, social, and streamlined than PayPal’s app.

GroupMe offers similar functionality with its Collect Money feature. This is great for funding a group event like a party, or requesting compensation after the fact. In a GroupMe group, simply click the paperclip icon to the left of the message compose field, tap collect, and enter how much each person owes you. Folks pay via credit card (there’s a 3.5 percent charge plus 30 cents for each contributor), and you’re notified when everyone has ponied up. If someone doesn’t have the app, you can just share a provided custom link for them to pay over the web.

If you’re concerned about rent, Lovely (free on iOS and Android) now offers an automated rent payment system called Pay With Lovely. Renters can automate their rent payments through the app or over the web. Just input your rent amount and your landlord’s contact information, and you can set up monthly recurring payments. You get notified five days before a transaction goes through, when the payment is actually made, and when your landlord actually deposits the dinero.

Another option for sending and receiving money between friends or contacts is Square Cash or Google Wallet. Both services let you send and receive money via email. With Square Cash, just link your debit card to your account, then enter the recipients email address, Cc cash@square.com on the email, and enter the amount in the subject line. If you want to request money, it’s the same process, but you Cc request@square.com instead. You can also use the Square Cash app (free on iOS and Android). With Google Wallet, you can send or receive money for free from a linked bank account, or send money with a 2.9 percent transaction fee with a debit or credit card. You can use the Google Wallet app, or tap the “Attach Money” icon in Gmail, which is still rolling out to users, to send it via email.